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Tag Archives: Willy

On September 13, 1916, children’s author Roald Dahl was born in Cardiff, Wales. Although his career was focused mainly in print, Dahl’s career has made a significant contribution to popular film. The author is behind such classics as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, The Witches, and Fantastic Mr. Fox, all which have seen big-screen adaptations. His career in the film industry includes several screenwriting endeavors. He wrote an early script for the 1967 James Bond film You Only Live Twice, and another for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, although both of these scripts were later reworked by other screenwriters. As if his scripts being thrown out and reworked wasn’t enough to make him steer clear of the film business, Dahl also wrote the initial script for the film adaptation of his book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Paramount Pictures, however, brought in a second screenwriter, David Seltzer, to write another version with the character focus falling on the magical chocolatier Willy Wonka instead of the young boy Charlie in Dahl’s novel. The title of the film was also changed to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory to reflect the importance of the character. Continue reading →

Legendary comedic actor Gene Wilder, best known for his roles in films like Young Frankenstein, The Producers, Blazing Saddles, and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, passed away Monday after a struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease. The actor was twice nominated for an Academy Award, one for his role in The Producers and the other as co-writer with Mel Brooks for Young Frankenstein. Wilder first gained attention in a production of Off Broadway’s Roots in 1961. He then continued working in television and on Broadway for a number of years, where he first caught the eye of filmmaker Mel Brooks. The actor starred in a production of Bonnie and Clyde in 1967 before teaming up with Brooks for his breakout role in The Producers, which earned him his first nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Continue reading →

After the limited release that took place on Christmas Day, writer/director Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight is now playing in theaters nationwide. Starring Samuel L. Jackson (Die Hard with a Vengeance, The Avengers) Kurt Russell (The Thing, Escape from New York), Jennifer Jason Leigh (Road to Perdition, The Machinist), Walton Goggins (The Green Mile, Sons of Anarchy), Tim Roth (Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction), Michael Madsen (Free Willy, Kill Bill Vol. 2), and Bruce Dern (Django Unchained ,Nebraska), the film takes place in post Civil War Wyoming, where a group of bounty hunters become trapped in a lodge during a snow storm and end up having to survive both the storm, and each other. Tarantino worked with Oscar-winning composer Ennio Morricone (The Good The Bad and the Ugly, Once Upon A Time in the West) on the new project, Morricone’s first Western film score since the mid-70s, making Hateful Eight the first film of Tarantino’s to feature an all-out theatrical score and not simply a soundtrack. Those that were lucky enough to catch it in theaters last week have reported nothing but great reviews, so even if you’re not a Tarantino or Western-genre fan, I would definitely put this one on your list. The trailer is available one more time on MADE. Enjoy!

Now that the Star Wars bubble has burst, it’s time to look forward to this week’s Christmas Day releases. The first up is one we’ve been waiting for since last Christmas, when a version of the script was leaked and writer/director Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Django Unchained) was urged to file a lawsuit over the incident. The Hateful Eight is the eighth writing/directing project from Tarantino and is another Western outing that takes place in post-Civil War Wyoming, where a group of bounty hunters are forced to seek shelter from a blizzard, only to find themselves in a game of betrayal and deception. This time out, Tarantino’s stylistic approach to filmmaking will be backed by a full score from Oscar-winning composer Ennio Morricone, whose last Western-film score went to 1975’s A Genius, Two Friends, and an Idiot, but he is more famously known in the Western genre for his contributions to films like A Fistful of Dollars (1964), The Good The Bad and the Ugly (1966), and Once Upon A Time in the West (1968). Continue reading →

The 5Boro crew took to vimeo last week to post a montage of their 2013 exploits. The video features the likes of Jordan Trahan, Willy Akers & Dan Pensyl among others as the crew shreds their home turf NYC. Peep the video above and stay tuned for more from 5Boro as we get into 2014.